


1004: What Is Love?

by SevenCandlesticks



Category: B.A.P, EXO, Secret (Korea Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Aliens, F/M, Fluff, Light Fantasy, Sci-Fi, contains some dark/action moments, light hearted romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 03:22:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17675507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SevenCandlesticks/pseuds/SevenCandlesticks
Summary: Can something good possibly come from an intent for harm?





	1. - Prologue -

**Author's Note:**

> This is a special series that serves as an alternate story path after chapter 13 of my other fanfiction, "Matoki Signal". Please read at least that far before reading this story in order to understand.
> 
> I hope you enjoy it! This one is especially fun to write ^^

Under regular circumstances, Chen would be a bit fearful of reporting a mission failure to Suho. But he was quite confident in this final solution. Baekhyun and Xiumin seemed to be on his side in this matter. But...they knew this would be their last chance. He knew it was a severe risk what he was asking, but they were out of options.

Zelo was in the way of destroying B.A.P. They are Mato's most elite force for a reason, dealing a blow like taking Zelo down would make sweeping past them a hell of a lot easier.

"I know we failed the last mission." Chen began.

"A mission you said was  _nearly infallible."_ Suho seethed.

"Listen, the way that android is programmed makes it difficult to control him. Something inside him  _terminated_  my anomaly. Couldn't erase it, but he could shut himself off so the execution was cancelled. Which allowed  _them_  to remove it entirely."

"We need the information on the spectrum. How to fix it. You couldn't even get that?"

This is when Chen smirked. "To be honest, I think they don't know how to fix it either. They just know it's on Earth."

"So intercepting was a waste of time?"

He shook his head. "No. It just proved to me more we really have to get rid of their android to make things easier for us."

Suho agreed to an extent, just enough to hear him out. "Okay... how do you think we're going to achieve that?"

"Kill him." he simply responded.

"How many times have we tried to do that?" Suho shuddered to think of it. "It's stupid, he should be easy to tear apart. What the hell is protecting his system?"

"That's the point. You know the Matoki are highly advanced in technology, it's their strength and not ours. But..." he paused a moment. This is where he got a little nervous, but the risk would be worth it. "...I need permission to use  _the serum."_

"The serum? Why?" Suho was shocked at the audacity of that suggestion. "We only have  _one_  and if you use it, we can't produce another one!"

"Don't you think easier access to seizing the spectrum is worth the risk?"

Suho seethed, putting his hand to his forehead in frustration. They were running out of options. "Okay... but robot or not, he does have to consume it or it won't work. Have fun figuring out how you're going to force it down his throat."

Chen smirked. "That's actually the easiest part."

He was confident, and Suho had to admit that Chen was deadly when he was confident.

So he gave him the serum. The one and only serum created from the sacred tree sap before EXO was split into mirror'd sides, that's why it could never be reproduced. It had incredible properties and was extremely experimental, but was completely benign to organic lifeforms.

It only had an effect on _synthetic_ beings.

Holding the vile in his hand, Chen felt like he won the lotto. This would enable the capability to actually  _kill_  the "android".

"We're still considering abducting the  _black pearl_  if you fail again." Suho told him.

"Heh, I won't fail, so save the headache."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- So we have a few references to the story told in EXO's "Mama" intro. I thought it'd be interesting for the experimental serum to be made from the sap of the tree, and due to its split, can not be duplicated  
> \- Yes, when I say Chen felt like he won the lotto, I am referencing another song  
> \- Listening to the song 'Black Pearl' inspired something interesting for the upcoming sequel to Matoki Signal, so whilst you won't know what the black pearl (which they are using as a codename) is in this story, you will at some point--but it needs to be referenced for consistency


	2. CH1: Digest

It's been a little over 3 weeks since B.A.P landed on Earth. A lot happened after the first week, that being the unexpected Exotic anomaly that infected Zelo and caused him to nearly mangle Jihyo in an attempt to extract information--such that she didn't even have. The good news was Zelo had a self-programmed protocol, endearingly called '1004', to protect Jihyo from harm--so the execution was terminated.

The investigation and search for the needed power source to save their dying planet was still underway, but going a lot slower than expected. To say that General Himchan wasn't getting absolutely sick of his Governor's whiny calls would be a complete lie, but it also would be a lie to say that he  _always_  hated hearing from her. No, despite his easy irritability when it came to dealing with her, if you kept an eye on him you would notice the occasional caressing of the calling device after a call ended.

The weather has been a bit on the weird side as of late. There's been some scattered rain pour here and there, and currently clouds blanketed the sky. Today Himchan didn't want to do anything and just rest his head to be ready for any searchings tomorrow, so he let everybody have the day off. No errands, no research--a rare treat for the entire crew, including the Earthian recruits. Though admittedly, Nayeon was a bit disappointed.

Everyone was practically doing their normal thing, but Jihyo was  _bored beyond belief_  and wanted to go outside. The way her eyes were fixated on the door as she rested her cheek against her hand made it clear of her desires. Zelo picked up on this and approached her, "Do you want to go somewhere?"

"Hm?" her eyes shifted his direction, then back at the door with a sigh. "Yeah..."

"We could go somewhere."

"Well--" she turned her head to look at Zelo to say something, but he looked hopeful. She wasn't sure if it was because he wanted to go outside too, or he just didn't like seeing Jihyo bored. "...I want to but..."

"It's okay, I'll watch you. You won't get hurt."

Her eyes widened a bit when he said that. His protective nature was so sure and automatic. "Yeah, well, that's not--"

"Oh..." his head slightly lowered in disappointment. He seemed hurt, he must've misinterpreted that she was still scared of him after the incident 2 weeks ago. She can't have that, so she jumped off the couch and took his hand. "Let me grab my backpack."

Proceeding to do just that, she put her arms through the straps and headed toward the door, her hand still firmly gripping Zelo's. But their sudden action of departure grabbed the attention of Yongguk, who stood in front of the door and asked, "Where are you going?"

Jihyo immediately halted. This was the reasoning behind why she said, "well, that's not--".

"Jihyo's bored." Zelo replied.

He crossed his arms. "So?"

"Pfft..." Jihyo puffed up her cheeks in a pout.

"She wants to go outside, so I'm going to come too so she's safe." Zelo smiled saying this.

Yongguk's eyes shifted from Zelo to Jihyo, he also noticed their hands entwined. Sighing, he took a step aside to let them go. This caused Jihyo's eyes to widen in surprise and confusion, but she didn't question it and left while they still could. Once they were out of sight, a slight smirk pulled at his lips. Good, Jihyo trusts Zelo again, he thought.

* * *

 

It was cold out and a little drizzly. Luckily they had the sense to throw on light jackets, suitable during wet weather. Unfortunately, Jihyo's wasn't the hoodie kind and they didn't have an umbrella on hand.

So they did what anyone else would do when the rain starts falling; go up against a building, underneath any sort of overhang no matter how little of a shield it was.

"Haaa... maybe this was a bad idea." Jihyo said.

Zelo didn't say anything. He looked fascinated by the rain, honestly.

"Don't you get weather like this on Mato?"

He looked at her, slightly shaking his head.

"It doesn't rain?"

He paused a moment, then looked at the sidewalk. "Not really...  _I've_  never seen it."

"Oh... umm..." she didn't know what to say to that. There was so much about B.A.P's home planet she didn't know. In fact, the only reason they came to "invade" Earth was to save it.

This caused an awkward silence, but it wouldn't linger long. Someone was about to pass them by, but he stopped when he saw them. They knew his face, he was the counter guy at the karaoke place. Later, they would remember him as  _Xiumin._

"You look cold." he said, looking at Jihyo.

"Huh? Oh, haha..." she tried laughing it off. "Yeah, well, I should've known better and prepared a better jacket."

He chuckled slightly at her comment. "Oh, here."

He was holding a thermos in his hand, and he gave it to Jihyo.

"I think you need this more than I do. I haven't drank any, and it's warm, not hot." he looked at Zelo. "Sorry that I only have one, but I'm sure your lady needs it more." he looked at Jihyo again with a small smile. "Take care."

With a small wave, he walked off.

Once he was out of earshot, Jihyo looked at the canister oddly. "That was weird...."

Out of curiosity, Jihyo unscrewed the lid because she wanted to smell it, but Zelo was very weary and immediately swiped it from her-- _downing half the canister._

"Ah--" she hardly had time to react to his action. "Zelo, what are you doing?!"

He looked at her, and by his expression, she already knew what he was trying to do.

Rolling her eyes she groaned, crossing her arms. "I wasn't going to drink any, I'm not stupid."

"Sorry, I.... just need to protect Jihyo."

She inhaled a breath and sighed slowly, but wore a warm smile afterwards. "I know. That's very sweet, thank you."

That made him smile again.

"Why'd you feel the need to down it yourself though?"

"To see what's in it..." he paused for a moment. For some reason, the rate of his breathing increased and he didn't know why. Nothing was overheating inside, but his breathing suddenly got heavy. His hands started shaking and he dropped the thermos, causing the remaining liquid to spill on the ground.

Jihyo was scared. "....Zelo? Wh-What's wrong?"

"Nn.." he put his hand to his mouth and started coughing violently, bending over a bit.

Something was wrong.

"Zelo... I think you better shutdown...."

He shook his head.

"You can't protect me if you're not functioning properly!"

"I can't..."

"You should!"

He lifted his head to look at her. "No, I...  _can't..._ "

Wait.

Jihyo understood now.

She linked arms with him and tried as best she could to keep him balanced, though that was frustrating due to the severe height difference. They needed to go home immediately.

As they made their way out of sight, Xiumin witnessed their departure and smirked, bringing a device up to his mouth. "Phase 1 successful."

* * *

 

The door burst open, and the two stumbled inside. Zelo was getting weaker by the minute and could hardly stand, and Jihyo didn't have the strength to hold him up. The moment they made it inside, she had to pull away, and he fell to his hands and knees on the floor.

Immediately the rest of B.A.P's attention was grabbed, and they rushed over to Zelo.

"What happened?" Himchan was shocked at the state he was seeing.

"I.... I don't know, he just started coughing and...." Jihyo was shaking herself, she was scared for him. "He can't shutdown."

"Youngjae." Yongguk spoke up. "Scan him."

Nodding, Youngjae did so immediately. Zelo didn't even try to resist or anything. The results that came up on the screen were puzzling. "....there's nothing."

"What?"

"System is normal. There's really nothing."

"Tch..." Yongguk pulled a wire out of his pocket and yanked Youngjae's tablet from him, plugging it in and then wrapping the end wire around Zelo's wrist. He was trying to manually force shutdown, but his commands were rejected. If nothing inside him was blocking, could it be an internal error preventing it? His only other option was to activate hibertation mode. This was a little different than sleep mode, in which Zelo wouldn't be able to "wake up" himself, it would have to be done manually by Yongguk. It's the closest thing to a shutdown he could achieve at the moment.

"Jongup." Himchan called.

"Yes, General?"

"Take him to Jihyo's room."

"Huh, why?!" Jihyo interjected.

"For your safety, Earthian."

Hearing that caused her eyes to moisten and she put her hand to her mouth, trying to muffle out any crying noises that may escape. Not again... she thought. This was cruel, it wasn't fair. He didn't deserve this.

As Jongup and Youngjae were carrying Zelo inside the bedroom, Himchan and Yongguk exchanged looks. Sighing, Yongguk just nodded and Himchan followed the others as Zelo was laid out on the bed.

"I don't get it, there's really nothing wrong." Youngjae said, completely baffled by the diagnostic results.

"Maybe the anomaly is invisible this time." Jongup suggested.

He shook his head. "No, I think it's something else."

"We can't take any chances." Himchan said.

"I know..." Youngjae pulled a small device from his pocket, attaching it beside the door frame. "Zelo shouldn't be able to wake up on his own, but otherwise... this'll keep him trapped here. He won't be able to exit, or get near the device to alter its instructions."

"But we can go in and out as we please?" Jongup questioned.

"As long as you're not an android."

"Alright then. Tamper with him in the morning, let's hope it's nothing more than an error." Himchan was the first to leave the room, followed by Jongup.

Youngjae took one last look at Zelo, just lying there as if he were sleeping. Unlike sleep mode, it was a mode where he appeared off. No breathing, no subconcious alert... if not for the phantom load, he  _would_  be off. That was the only difference.

Closing the door behind him, Youngjae explained the situation to Jihyo. "He should be fine, I'll be looking over him tomorrow to test for errors, but it's getting late... I don't want to stay up all night."

"Guess I'll be sleeping on the couch then." she sighed.

That was the least of her worries. She knew that. All she wanted was for Zelo to be OK.

Daehyun, who was sitting by himself nearby, could sense her melancholy and offered some of his food to try and help her feel better.

"Ah, no thank you," she told him.

"But it's chicken."

"Aheh, sorry, I'm just not hungry right now."

"Sit down then." he tapped on the chair next to him. "Standing up makes you worry more."

She had to giggle at that statement, but humoured Daehyun, taking a seat next to him. I guess sitting down does make you calm down, she thought. Still, she couldn't get Zelo out of her mind.

He'll be fine... right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... what do you think the serum actually does? The prologue actually has a hint~


	3. CH2: Pulse

Morning came.

Almost everyone was awake, with Himchan preparing breakfast in the kitchen.

Zelo was still locked inside Jihyo's room in hibernation mode, or so they thought. While there was no form of digital anomaly inside him, something foreign  _indeed_  was ravaging through his system... or rather,  _changing his system._

And these changes had finally completed.

Gasping for a large sum of air, Zelo shot up in a sitting position on Jihyo's bed. He was feeling a bit shaken and disoriented, putting his hand to his forehead because of a  _splitting headache_  that luckily only lasted seconds. This was weird... it was like a sensory overload. He suddenly felt more...  _sensitive_  physically and mentally, like he could actually  _feel_  things. He always could to some degree, but it was measured and calculated and more so a knowledge in his head rather than tangible.

Once he was able to steady his breathing, he let his arm fall limp at his side. Why did his forehead feel kind of moist? Did someone pour water on him?

Looking around, he realised he was in Jihyo's room, only there was no Jihyo. The last thing he could remember was she was struggling to keep him on his feet before finally just letting him fall to the ground when they arrived home. He should probably let her know there's nothing to worry about.

As he attempted to walk away from the bed, he nearly lost balance, becoming aware at just how tall he really was. Luckily he was able to balance himself by falling toward a wall. He just needed to think, stand a little longer. Clearly something in his settings had been altered, he thought. But that would come later, he needed to see Jihyo first.

Turning the knob, he sprung open the door and stumbled out of the bedroom. Immediately he was met with a rather pleasant aroma coming from the kitchen, and he could feel an odd but painful sensation in his stomach.

"What the...!" Himchan stopped in his tracks the moment he noticed Zelo standing there. He wasn't supposed to be up, in fact, how the hell was he able to exit the room?!

Zelo, who was holding his stomach in discomfort, turned his head to look at him. "General?"

He cleared his throat, regaining composure. "Yeah?"

"I'm hungry."

Okay... he was  _not_  anticipating those words. He was what now?

Youngjae, who was standing on the otherside, looked just as baffled as Himchan. The two exchanged looks before Himchan nodded and told Zelo, "Yeah, uh... just wait there."

"Thank you...nnn..." he really wasn't enjoying the discomfort in his stomach right now. It made this weird rumbling sound. Maybe whatever was in that weird drink he chugged down yesterday caused harm to his system. Aside from that, he was concerned with the  _steady beating_  he subtlely felt in the left side of his chest. That's where his BIOS chip was, it couldn't have dismounted and started rattling around, could it?

"Zelo!!"

"Nn..!" he was taken aback by the sudden tight grip around his torso. Jihyo had literally ran up and hugged him in sheer excitement and relief.

She looked up at him and smiled, "Haa... you had me so scared yesterday! Oh--"

Letting go, she took a step back and pointed up. "You decided to change your hair black?"

"Huh?" he immediately grabbed at a tuff of his hair, of course he couldn't see it unless he had a mirror. "Jihyo..."

"Eh? Say that again."

He was confused. "Jihyo?"

"Wow... your voice sounds kinda  _different."_

"...different?" For some reason, this was scaring him.

"Yeah, like... hmm..." she snapped her fingers. "It's like you matured! Just a  _little bit._ It's noticeably the same, but... it sounds pitched down sort of _."_

Was his vocal settings altered too?

He looked down at Jihyo, who seemed more fascinated than anything. But also, for some reason... he noticed she was rather  _pleasing_  to look at. The shape of her eyes, the brightness of her smile, the curveture of her body. It caused his cheeks to feel flushed.

"...Zelo?"

He couldn't say anything. He was  _awestruck._  People always looked like people to him, so why did Jihyo stand out all of a sudden? Nothing was different about her, she was the same!

Something was  _definitely_  wrong with him.

Zelo quickly put his hand over his left eye and tried to bring up his internal control panel...  _but nothing happened._ That's when he started to panic. "I can't access my settings."

He kept trying, but nothing appeared. This was just like yesterday when all commands to power down were rejected. No, it was  _worse._ He tried concentrating as hard as he could, but the control panel would not summon in his mind's eye.

No commands were rejected because he literally could access  _nothing._  He was overcome with anxiety, he really wasn't feeling well.

"I can't access them..." he repeated, his breathing becoming ragged. "I..."

Everyone tried to calm him down, but to no avail. He just kept screaming that he couldn't access his settings and continued making futile attempts, only to be more frustrated.

So Youngjae stepped in with a drastic measure.

He grabbed Zelo by the collar, making him bend backward just enough. With something held tightly in his fist, he jabbed it into Zelo's neck and after a couple seconds, his breathing slowed down and he passed out.

* * *

 

The others were with Jihyo in her room. Youngjae needed to discuss something privately with Yongguk.

Zelo was laid out on the couch, asleep. The two stood behind. Yongguk looked down at him in worry, but then back to Youngjae. "I'm surprised you managed to shut him down."

"Aheh... no, I didn't." he replied.

"What do you mean?" Yongguk took another look at his precious android. He could see the subtle movement of his chest, so he was breathing. "Oh, sleep mode."

"No, he's...  _actually breathing."_

"What?" he looked back at him in disbelief. What sort of nonsense is that? His breathing capability worked as a fanning unit, he doesn't  _actually_  breathe.

Youngjae sighed. He couldn't believe it either, but there was no other explanation. "Zelo was not supposed to have left Jihyo's room. The device I placed denied all exit and entry of A.I. So how do you suppose he got out?"

"It's broken, obviously."

He shook his head. "Yongguk, I know it's an insane conclusion, but he wasn't malfunctioning or infected or anything. He's..."

"Something serious has happened to my android and you give me  _that?"_

Youngjae bit his lip, digging through his pocket to reveal the most damning evidence--a syringe. "I sedated him. He's sedated, that's why he's sleeping."

Before Yongguk could even properly react to that statement, Zelo seemed to be in discomfort, slightly tossing and turning. This was worrisome. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's probably having a nightmare."

"Jihyo..." Zelo muttered softly in a sad and anxious tone.

With a sigh, Yongguk put his hand on his chest and started to shake him awake. A bit startled, Zelo opens his eyes and sits up, seeming confused. He looks around, then up at Yongguk. "Wait... where's Jihyo?"

"She's in her room."

Zelo looked distressed. "I think I've accumulated too much error data."

Yongguk swallowed. "That wasn't an error, you were just dreaming."

"Dreaming?" he tilted his head. "But I can't--"

It was obvious Zelo had trouble believing what he was trying to tell him. The only way was to prove it, so Yongguk pulled something from his pocket. Sliding his thumb across it, a blade came out. "Let me see your hand."

Without any form of resistance, Zelo obeyed his command. Yongguk took his hand and slowly slid the knife across his palm. "Nn..." Zelo started seething, it  _hurt._ It stung at first, then it felt like it was burning.

He pulled back and stared at his hand, eyes widening at the sight. He was...  _bleeding._  That was blood trickling down from the incision, warm and sticky. Seeing that made him feel scared. "...what's happening to me?"

Just then, Jihyo decided to come out of her room. She couldn't wait there any longer, she really wanted to see if Zelo was OK.

The moment she entered the living room, Zelo turned his head. "Jihyo..."

She came to a halt once she was only standing inches from the sofa. She saw his hand, why was...?

_"I made sure Zelo resembles a normal person as much as possible. But there are three small things that give it away."_

What Yongguk had told her immediately came to mind. 

_"He can't bleed."_

Then why was he bleeding from his hand?

_"He can't break a sweat."_

But he looks drenched right now.

_"And..."_

Because of his cut, Zelo couldn't help but be reminded of the incident 2 weeks ago. He immediately stood up and took her hand, pushing up her long sleeve to reveal evidence of where the gash was made. It still caused him distress knowing he did that to her.

But now... he could  _empathize._ He held up his hand to show her, "This is what it felt like?"

At this point, she couldn't hold back her tears, and she simply nodded. "But you shouldn't... keep blaming yourself. It wasn't your fault. You still protected me, remember?"

That caused Zelo to smile. He really liked her a lot, he cared about her a lot, she must've as well. He was certain.

Unable to resist, he picked her up and held her in a tight embrace. Jihyo giggled at the sudden gesture and hugged him back. It felt so nice and warm, and...

... what was that sound?

Her ear happened to be pressed against his chest. There was a steady rythmic noise... like...  _a heartbeat._

_"...he doesn't have a pulse."_

Her grip loosened and she looked up at him with wide eyes.

Zelo's a robot, right? Remember Jihyo, a robot!

No. That logic didn't apply anymore.

Something happened to him. Changed him.

Because....

_...Zelo's (not) a robot._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \- So in 'Matoki Signal' I imagine his voice to be as it was around debut, from this chapter onward I imagine it to be like his matured voice now!  
> \- The end line I purposely did in reference to the titling style of Rebuild Evangelion


	4. CH3: Explain

To say everyone wasn't a little shocked would be quite the understatement.

Zelo sat at the breakfast counter, with a plate of food prepared for him, _eating._

Himchan, who was standing on the otherside, was still in disbelief at what he was seeing. It's not the fact Zelo was consuming food to be weird.... he had that ability, it was another way to recharge his battery and help throw people off that he's an android.

No, what was weird about this whole situation... _is that Zelo was actually hungry._

He seemed to be enjoying the food too. He looked at Himchan with a smile and told him, "It's good."

"Uhh... thanks." Himchan looked over at Yongguk, eyes demanding an explanation.

Daehyun sat on the left side of Zelo, enjoying his own meal, but was fascinated by their robotic maknae right now. What really caught his attention though was the fact that his left hand was bandaged up. "Hey, Zelo... what's wrong with your hand?"

Zelo paused a moment before answering. "It was bleeding."

Daehyun dropped his chopsticks. "Huh?"

"Alright, Yongguk... Youngjae. Explain what happened." Himchan demanded.

"You're not going to believe it." Yongguk replied, arms crossed.

Youngjae sighed, really anxious about telling everyone. It was a bit drastic how both Yongguk and Zelo had to accept this fact, hopefully no one else needed a demonstration. "Zelo is not a robot."

Daehyun pulled his mask down, bursting into laughter. "Youngjae, you're usually more serious than that!"

"I am being serious."

"Wait...." Himchan pointed over at Zelo. "Is that why he was able to leave the room?"

"I checked the device. It isn't broken. Zelo simply didn't apply to the block anymore."

Himchan couldn't quite grasp the concept. "That's not possible..."

"Maybe that's what was happening to him last night." Jongup said. "He was unable to shutdown because he lost that ability. He was already changing."

Well, Jongup was taking this all surprisingly well. As for the others... not so much.

"Is there more?" Zelo held up his plate hopefully.

Great, another mouth to feed. Himchan sighed and shook his head. "Sorry, that's the last of it."

"Ohh..." he was a little disappointed.

Jihyo was sitting on the right side of him, eating a Chinese rice bun filled with bamboo shoots. She had a second one untouched and felt bad for Zelo, so she pushed her plate over. "You can have my last one."

Zelo looked down at the plate but felt bad, shaking his head.

"Hey, Zelo..." Daehyun held up his leftovers. "You can have mine."

"Okay~" he took his plate and started eating without question.

Daehyun was dumbfounded. "Why did you just take mine without hesitating?!"

"Then don't offer it." Himchan told him. "I already had to sacrifice my portions just to feed him."

"General, you didn't eat?" Zelo was starting to feel bad again.

"Don't worry about it. You.... need it more."

"Okay..." he stared down at his empty plate, feeling like he was being greedy.

"You sure you don't want this?" Jihyo held up her last remaining bun. "It's good."

He shook his head, even though he was still kinda hungry.

"Awww, come on, at least try some." she ripped a piece of it off, holding it up to his mouth. "Come on, ah~"

Zelo opened his mouth and ate the piece from her fingers.

"Here. More~" Jihyo kept feeding it to him, until the entire bun was gone.

He smiled shyly, obviously he liked it.

Himchan walked over to Yongguk's side. "Why do you think this happened to him? What caused it?"

He sighed. "Zelo told me he was trying to protect Jihyo, because a stranger gave her a drink. He panicked and just took it from her.... drinking it himself."

"Are you suggesting it was some kind of potion?"

"Whatever it was did this to him. And there's only one possibility who could've done this."

Himchan seethed. "Exotics..."

Yongguk nodded. "Bingo."

"I don't understand their tactic. Why would they need to change Zelo like that?"

"To make him an easier target."

"What?"

"He no longer has his defensive database, and while Zelo is a trained soldier like the rest of us... he's not used to being without his robotic abilities."

"You think they did this to kill him?"

Yongguk narrowed his eyes. "I _know_ they did."

"Then why would they give it to Jihyo?"

"Obviously, they've done their research enough to know how protective Zelo is of her. Jihyo wouldn't have drank it anyway, she was just curious of the substance. But Zelo's caution levels are set extremely high concerning her. Basically, he panicked. And they knew he would."

Himchan sighed. "He was trying to test it for poison."

"I told Youngjae to run an examination on him later. We don't know exactly what kind of effects this did."

"Good call. I'm going to report this incident to the Governor. We should probably call the other two Earthians for a meeting as well."

* * *

 

"Hurry up, hurry up, HURRY UP!!! PLEASE!!!"

Nayeon was extremely antsy as she sat on the passenger side of the van as Hoseok drove toward Jihyo's apartment that afternoon. General Himchan had called them for an 'urgent matter' which could not be discussed on the phone, so as soon as Nayeon got off work (or made some excuse to do so), they had to report their butts their immediately.

"PLEASE HOSEOK, DRIVE FASTER!" she screamed.

"Why didn't you take a piss before we left?!" Hoseok screamed back.

"I didn't have to go then." she pouted, saying so in an as-a-matter-of-fact voice.

Hoseok groaned. The things he puts up with for this woman.

Finally, they arrived. Nayeon immediately dashed out of the van, running up the stairs like an Olympian runner, and started pounding on the door. Hoseok walked up behind her, sighing. "Nayeon, just enter the password."

"Oh. Right." she immediately typed as fast as she could, only to be met with a 'rejection' text on the little screen. "WHAT? DON'T TELL ME THEY CHANGED IT!"

"Nayeon, you probably made a typo, please--"

"Let me in! Let me in! This is an emergency!" she cried.

The door opened, and without even so much as a 'hello', she dashed inside (not even bothering to take off her shoes), only to be met with horror that the bathroom was in use.

"Nooo...!" she moaned, trying to break inside.

Himchan immediately covered his ears, annoyed by the Earthian's constant screaming. "What's wrong with her?"

"Her bladder is full." Hoseok replied.

Nayeon posted vigil by the door, completely losing her nerves. However, the moment she heard that glorious toilet flush, followed by the pop of the faucet, her face lit up like she had been saved. No sound was more heavenly right now!

Standing to her feet, she felt the doorknob turning, startling the person standing inside. Their gazes met as she stared up at the tall figure standing there. "Oh, um... sorry...." Zelo said, a bit embarrassed. He slightly bowed in apology and quickly got out so she could use it.

Nayeon's eyes widened, fixated on the "android" in confusion to what just happened. "Do robots use toilets?"

"Nayeon, just use it!" Hoseok shouted.

"Oh, right..." but before she could get in, the ninja that was Daehyun snuck passed her, shutting the door before she even had a prayer. "Noooooo!" she screamed, banging on the door again.

"Ugh... Nayeon...." Hoseok had to facepalm. He then looked up at Zelo. "What were you doing in the there anyway?"

"I... really needed to go..." he replied shyly.

His eyes widened in sheer confusion. "Excuse me?!"

"We'll explain later." Himchan told him. "It's the reason why you're here."

"Ummm....uh..." Hoseok had no words. What the hell was going on here?

* * *

 

Nayeon was collapsed on the couch, exhausted, from her constant screaming and waiting. Finally she was able to relieve herself after Daehyun had stolen her turn, only to flop facedown on the sofa. Jihyo sat at the end, taking off her shoes since she didn't bother with proper etiquette due to her emergency.

Youngjae stood in the center of the room, preparing an explanation for Nayeon and Hoseok. "So... Zelo is not a robot."

That garnered silence obviously. Hoseok wanted to say something, but literally had no words, and Nayeon was practically half asleep that such a declaration didn't compute.

"Um...ahem..." Youngjae scratched the back of his head, trying to figure out how to explain this as articulately as possible. "Something happened to Zelo, and uh....well, in an attempt to protect Jihyo from harm, he drank something he shouldn't have. We're pretty sure that was the cause and affect."

"What'd he drink?" Hoseok immediately turned to Zelo.

"I was unable to determine..." Zelo stated. "Someone gave it to Jihyo and I didn't want her to consume any without testing it first. Many of my basic functions started failing after that...."

"Jihyo brought him home immediately, and I found no traces of any malicious software." Youngjae continued. "But all commands to shutdown were being denied, so Yongguk placed him in hibernation mode until further notice. We placed him in a room, and I set up a device to deny exit and entry of A.I. But not only did he wake up this morning, he... left the room. Because he _wasn't_ an A.I."

"Hold on....!" That grabbed Nayeon's attention, causing her to sit up in disbelief. "So Zelo really had to use the toilet?" she suddenly gasped. "I can only imagine how weird that must've felt for him...."

Hoseok felt like he was suffering second-hand embarrassment right now, and while Jihyo normally would too, instead she was just bubbling up with laughter for some reason (though she was doing her best to suppress it).

Himchan concluded the meeting with what he discussed with Yongguk earlier. It was obvious the levels of Exotic threat were higher than originally anticipated. They want the same power source B.A.P needs. Now they also want to kill Zelo. The question is.... how? And when?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Calling people from EXO Planet 'Exotics' is based on something I heard, that before their official fandom name came out, some fans were calling themselves that, so I thought it'd make an interesting name for what EXO citizens would be called.


End file.
